New Delhi, March 28 (IANS) The urban development ministry Thursday advised the states to examine the possibility of providing separate bus services for women in cities with a population of over a million, a senior official said Thursday.
"The urban development ministry has issued an advisory to all states to run separate bus services for women in cities where the population is over one million. It is up to the state governments to take it up. The ministry has suggested that if the states need to procure more buses they can avail funds under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)," Manoj Gupta, spokesperson, urban development ministry, told IANS.
The ministry has also asked the states to implement the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) as per "Urban Bus Specifications" in all the city buses.
ITS will offer commuters precise information of the arrival and departure of buses at select bus stops on LCD screens put up across the city. Passengers can avail service details on select routes and stops on their cellphones by sending SMSes.
"It is a passenger-friendly initiative and it is now available only in Mysore in Karnataka. Delhi is also planning to have ITS facility... hope it will be soon available," Gupta added.
Apart from separate buses for women, the ministry has asked the state governments to install Global Positioning System (GPS) or GPRS systems in auto-rickshaws and taxis.
"States have also been advised to initiate action for scientific management of auto-rickshaws and taxis by having GPS/GPRS and management through a common control centre so as to make this mode safe and more passenger-friendly," the ministry said.
Installation of GPS/GPRS would help in monitoring auto-rickshaws better, as there would be evidence of the route taken by the driver.
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